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“Pfft! Difficult!” Vera waved a hand like she was clearing the air of the words. “Nothing is difficult for Roman.”
Ruby smiled. “You must care about him a lot, the way you look after him.”
Vera came every few days to cook, crafting gourmet meals for Roman and Ruby to eat during the days she wasn’t at the loft. She bantered with Roman like a grandmother, their mutual affection obvious.
She laid a hand over her chest. “Like a son. I’ve been taking care of him and his brother since they were babies.”
Ruby didn’t know much about Roman’s brother Erik, only what Roman had told her before she’d found out he was part of the Russian Mob — that Erik was younger and troubled by addiction and a compulsion to win their father’s approval at any cost.
“Do you take care of Erik at his place too?” Ruby asked.
Caution dropped over Vera’s gaze. “Erik lives with his father. I take care of him there, as much as anyone can take care of that boy.”
“Wait… so you work at Igor’s house too?” Ruby asked.
“It’s best not to raise suspicion right now,” Vera said. “I have a family too. My daughter… my grandsons…”
It only took a few seconds for Ruby to get the picture: if Igor knew Vera was here helping Roman — even just to cook for him — she and her family would be in danger.
“But… you’ve worked for the Kalashniks for so long!” Roman was well into his thirties, and Vera said she’d been taking care of Roman since he was a baby.
Vera nodded. “Time is immaterial to Igor. He cares only for loyalty, and loyalty to Igor means making enemies of his enemies.”
“That must be hard.” Ruby was almost embarrassed. She’d been so focused on the consequences of Roman and Igor’s war to her own life that it had never occurred to her that others might be caught in the cross fire too. The thought chilled her. Vera was such a wonderful woman. Ruby would hate it if something happened to her or her family. “Maybe you shouldn’t come here for a while. I can cook for Roman and me.”
Vera waved her away and got to her feet. “Igor is not a king. I do what I want. I simply do it carefully.”
Ruby laughed in spite of the serious situation. She was starting to really like Vera,
“Well, please keep doing it carefully,” Ruby said.
“And you keep eating,” Vera said, removing her apron.
Ruby sighed. “I’m pretty sure I’ve gained back all the weight I lost and then some.”
“Is good to be soft.” Vera grinned, the lines around her eyes deepening. “Is part of being woman. I think Roman will say same thing.”
Ruby’s cheeks burned. “Roman and I aren’t—”
“Pfft,” Vera said, rolling her eyes. “I know exactly what you and Roman are,zaya.”
She turned and headed for the hall so quickly Ruby didn’t have time to ask her whatzayameant.
“Food in freezer and fridge,” Vera called out on her way down the hall.
“Thank you,” Ruby called after her. “And please be careful.”
She didn’t reply and a minute later Ruby heard the sound of the elevator door closing as Vera left the loft.
She took her sandwich to the kitchen and wrapped the uneaten half in foil, then put it in the fridge. She’d developed an embarrassingly childlike routine in the weeks she’d been at the loft: eating and reading, sleeping and getting fresh air on the deck, more eating and reading and sleeping.
But no more movies with Roman. She didn’t trust herself.
She was drowsy from the food and conversation with Vera. It was time for her afternoon nap.
Roman wasn’t home. He was almost never home during the day and often not at night either. When she asked about his plans for taking over his father’s criminal empire, he simply said things were coming along.
It was a frustratingly bland answer for the obstacle in her path: she couldn’t try to get Olivia back until Roman was out of her life and Roman couldn’t get out of her life until his father stopped being a threat to Ruby and her family.
